High Heat (Hotshots 2)

“Laundry day or...” Garrick didn’t think Rain was out to get laid, nor did he imagine curiosity about his scars was driving Rain either.

“Nah. More like I don’t want to rummage through a pile of suitcases for swim trunks I hate anyway.”

“You still haven’t unpacked?” Garrick followed him to the dining area, Cookie fast behind them both.

“Not a high priority. Rotating stuff into drawers as I do laundry,” Rain said dismissively.

“Fair enough.” And that was also a good reminder that Rain wasn’t about putting down roots. “And I’ve said before, you wear what makes you happy. Not something that you hate.”

“So that’s a yes to my idea or more of a keep-your-underwear-on compromise?” Rain set out the pizza and plates with the same efficiency as his tone, easy as if he ate here all the time and not like they’d only known each other a week. He slid into the chair to Garrick’s left and started dishing out the food.

“How about the compromise?” Garrick tried to sound like that was practical and not like he had any interest in seeing Rain’s underthings. And honestly, he wasn’t sure whether he was more concerned his dick would misbehave while skinny-dipping or that it wouldn’t.

“Oh man. This is good.” Rain dug into the pizza with an almost orgasmic intensity, nostrils flared, eyes wide, mouth lush, and suddenly Garrick’s worries about his dick being offline were unfounded because damn. He wanted more of that look and he wanted to be the cause of it.

“Yeah, it is,” he said gruffly as he helped himself. The pizza was exactly as he remembered—chewy crust that wasn’t too thin, like some local places’, creamy pesto-laced sauce, briny artichokes, and fresh spinach. “This is what I was craving. Thanks.”

“I’ll brave the big, scary biker dudes to get you more of this anytime.”

“They’re not so bad.” Garrick laughed, then sobered as he remembered that Rain wasn’t him, wasn’t from around here, and was wearing a lavender sweatshirt with a delicate pattern and slim fit. “Did someone hassle you? Maybe I should have gone—”

“Chill. No one gave me a hard time. And I could handle myself if they did.”

“Okay.” Garrick had picked up on what Rain had been trying to say in the car—he wasn’t changing for anyone, and his style was a part of him, something essential, not a costume he put on for kicks. And Garrick could be worried for him in certain situations, but he wasn’t going to lecture and potentially make Rain uncomfortable. That was the last thing he wanted.

“I’m regretting getting you the wings.” Rain’s voice was mischievous, not particularly grossed out, but Garrick still set aside the one he was eating.

“Vegetarian thing or...”

“Or. My feelings about the source are...mitigated, you could say, by you licking sauce off your fingers.”

“Is this like the me-giving-orders thing?” Garrick’s abs tightened at the thought of unintentionally turning Rain on again.

“Oh yeah.” Rain’s grin was an easy, friendly thing, not especially seductive, more like he was having great fun flirting and enjoying being around Garrick, which was more than a little infectious.

“I’m not sure whether I should put them aside for later or eat even slower and torture you more.”

“Torture. Always choose torture.” Eyes sparkling, Rain grabbed another piece of pizza.

Self-conscious now in a way he wasn’t used to being, Garrick took more pizza himself. Unlike Rain, who could make eating something he enjoyed sound like a low-key orgy, he didn’t really know how to be seductive while eating outside of the unintentional. And he still wasn’t entirely sure whether turning Rain on was a good idea.

Leading them both on seemed like a recipe for disaster, yet he couldn’t deny how good the flirting and banter felt, especially when he gave in and did eat another wing, and Rain did an exaggerated swoony sigh simply to make him laugh. It was a lightness he hadn’t had in months.

“Now tell me how to help make your hot tub dreams come true.” Rain managed to sound all fairy godmother-y as they packed the leftovers away. Garrick enjoyed how he managed to make the offer sound fun but not cheesy and how he always did it like that, deferring to Garrick to know what it was he needed or how he wanted things done.

“I can undress myself fine. Slow. But fine.” No way was he asking Rain for help undressing. Mainly because Rain’s hands all over him sounded like an awesome idea, but also a prelude to something a lot more intimate than whatever flirty friendship they currently had going. The warier parts of Garrick weren’t ready to go there. Yet. “It’s the getting in and out of the tub where I need a lot of help. I just don’t have the hip or ankle range of motion or the balance.”

“Well, that’s what I’m here for. My folks have a smaller one on their deck for...close friends, and there’s a bigger communal one that the community operates for everyone.”